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Walter Trout: Relentless

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Provogue Records
Released: 2003.08.12
Time:
 72:53
Category: Blues, Blues-Rock
Producer(s): Walter Trout, Jim Gaines
Rating:
Media type: CD
Web address: www.waltertrout.com
Appears with:
Purchase date: 2015
Price in €: 1,00





 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] I'm Tired (Walter Trout) - 6:03
[2] The Life I Chose (Walter Trout) - 6:07
[3] Jericho Road (Marie Trout / Walter Trout) - 4:30
[4] Work No More (Walter Trout) - 5:45
[5] Talk to Ya (Brian Pafumi) - 5:32
[6] Cry if You Want To (Walter Trout) - 4:45
[7] Chatroom Girl (Walter Trout) - 5:33
[8] My Heart Is True (Walter Trout) - 6:41
[9] Lonely Tonight (Walter Trout) - 2:24
[10] Helpin' Hand (Walter Trout) - 5:21
[11] Collingswood (Walter Trout) - 4:15
[12] Empty Eyes (Walter Trout) - 5:09
[13] The Best You Got (Walter Trout) - 6:24
[14] Mercy (Walter Trout) - 4:24

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Walter Trout - Guitar, Vocals, Art Direction, Concept, Executive Producer, Producer

Sammy Avila - Hammond B3 Organ, Vocals
Jim Trapp - Bass
Joseph Pafumi - Drums
Andrew Elt - Background Vocals

Jim Gaines - Mixing, Producer
Tom "Curly" Ruff - Executive Producer
Sjoerd V.D. Broek - Engineer
Paul Schoenmakers - Engineer
Brad Blackwood - Mastering
Valerie Behling - Graphic Design, Layout Design
Richard Boyles - Photography
Cor Oldenburg - Photography
Marie Trout - Cover Photography

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


Another in a series of undiluted blues-rock offerings from guitarist Walter Trout, Relentless, his 11th disc since 1990, doesn't offer any surprises. Released in conjunction with a DVD, the album was recorded live in the Netherlands club The Paradiso on a single day with little post-production sweetening or audience intervention. This results in a successful balance between sonics and concert sparks. For those who relish his by now standard brand of sturdy, guitar-heavy, Stevie Ray Vaughan-inspired music, Trout is in fine fret-shredding form here. But fans who'd like to see Trout swim in some new waters will find little of that on this outing. His music succeeds best live, where the sweat and intensity overrides lackluster, by-the-numbers Vaughan shuffles such as "Talk to Ya," a tune as ordinary as its title. Trout's gruff, everyman voice is acceptable, but it's difficult to do much with the "I had a hard childhood" lyrics of "Collingswood." Although it's too bad he's had a challenging upbringing, the heavy-handed approach makes you wish he'd hired a lyricist to express it more poetically. Interestingly, one of the album's best tracks is the gospel-infused ballad "Cry if You Want To," a beautiful melody reminiscent of the Rolling Stones' "Fool to Cry" where the remarkably succinct guitar solo supports the song instead of vice versa. "Lonely Tonight" is a rare solo acoustic track where Trout furiously bangs his unplugged guitar, but once again the tune is little more than a skeleton of a song. Then it's back to the same old, with the Steppenwolf-styled boogie of "Helpin' Hand," another in a series of excuses for Trout to pull out his meaty lead guitar licks. With his whiskey-soaked singing, hot strings, and fiery soloing, a little of this goes a long way, and 73 minutes is too much for all but the most relentless fans.

Hal Horowitz - All Music Guide



New Jersey native and California resident Trout is an established guitar star in Europe and he capitalizes on that fact on "Relentless," ripping through a live session of original material in front of an enthusiastic Amsterdam audience. Trout, as the title states, is a relentless guitarist with an aggressive and energetic style. On his seventh album he and his backing trio the Radicals deliver another solid, if admittedly sometimes less than sensational, exercise in well-played rocking blues, with the emphasis on rocking. Trout paid his blues dues working with John Lee Hooker, Canned Heat, and John Mayall but his hard and heavy sound is rooted in rock guitar showmanship. Fortunately he has the licks to keep it interesting, although when things get too frantic, such as on the overkill album closer "Mercy," it's difficult to discern the blues base of the music. Trout does slow down briefly, turning in the short acoustic tune "Lonely Tonight," but for the vast majority of the time the music is loud, lively, and barely blue.

Michael Point - Amazon.com



I must admit right up front that I am an avid Walter Trout fan. Like the old line, if you look up the definition of blues/rock in the dictionary, it will say “See Walter Trout.” I first saw him in concert in the late 80’s when he was one of the lead guitarists in John Mayall’s band (the other guitarist was Coco Montoya). Mayall would always let his band play a couple of songs before he came out to join them. I distinctly remember my jaw beginning to drop when Trout was just playing some tune-up blues riffs. It was clear from that concert that he was too great a performer to be the guitarist in someone else’s band, even it was Mayall, the British father of the blues. Since that time, I have purchased every recording on which he played. Needless to say, when his newly released CD “Relentless” was available this week, I had to buy a copy.

The entire CD was recorded live in Amsterdam in May of this year. I truly admire the concept of a live CD with all new songs. You get to hear the songs performed spontaneously and untouched by studio manipulation, yet perfectly recorded with all instruments and vocals clear and “hot.” Trout has always had a four-piece band with lead guitar, bass, drums, and organ. Although the drummer and keyboard player have changed over the years, Jimmy Trapp, the bass player, has been with Trout for over 10 years. The CD has 14 new songs with most of them between four and six minutes in length. The songs can be categorized as follows: two are slow blues, three are somewhat pop-oriented (two of these featuring acoustic guitar), and the rest are tough & aggressive blues/rock. Each of Trout’s previous CDs seems to feature an extended slow blues with intense and emotional guitar playing and the two on this CD are no exception. Two of the pop-oriented songs feature acoustic guitar and an opportunity to appreciate Trout’s excellent vocals in a quieter than normal setting. The blues/rock tracks are, in my opinion, some of the best he has recorded. Each has an immediately catchy opening riff. As always, his guitar playing is extraordinary. I almost run out of superlatives to describe his playing, but the several that come to mind are: taste, tone, speed, fluidity, and intensity. On one track (Empty Eyes), he plays slide guitar, which I don’t remember hearing him play much, if at all, in previous recordings. And, as an added bonus, the DVD of the performance will be released in the Fall of this year.

For me, everything I look for in a great CD comes together in “Relentless.” Instrumental prowess, great vocals, recording quality, songwriting, and “attitude” are all found here. This CD will remain in my player for a long time to come.

Al Kaplan
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